RetroN1 with NES 4 Score ... does it work ?

[mike boss]

RetroN1 with NES 4 Score ?

I wanted to pick up a RetroN1.
I looked online and the reviews were mixed (isn't that always the case?).
Some people love it, some hate it.

Locally they are $30, and I think it is about $30 to repair my NES.
Not that I can not do both, but I'm just leaning towards the RetroN1.
(off topic, why dont these consoles come with HDMI out ? I'm not saying have a better picture, but why not have HDMI out ?)

Anyway............. does anyone know if the RetroN1 would work with the NES 4 Score ?



*** Id love to play Super Spike V-Ball!

[mike boss]

I emailed Hyperkin.
They said it should work, but it has not been tested.
Hoping to get one this weekend, I'll test & report.

[Howard_Casto]

I was going to mention this to you in PM, but I wasn't sure if you had a real NES or not and they are starting to get costly.

Nearly every NES clone out there is a NOAC (nes on a chip).  Overall they are pretty good, but they suffer from general sound and compatibility issues.  Basically it's not using real nes hardware and you might as well be emulating the games.    I'm not sure about the 4-score, but I wouldn't count on it.  They don't have hdmi out because the NOAC only supports composite out.  They are the same as a real nes in that regard. 

The main reason to avoid one is you can't play the awesome castlevania III on it.

http://www.dkoldies.com/retron-1-system-pak-new/

Note the list of games you can't play (which is incomplete I think) at that link.

They have a bad habit of scratching/messing up your carts as well until you break them in.

Get your nes fixed... you are going to have a better experience for your money. 

What's wrong with it btw?  90% of nes issues is just the stupid pin connector.  Open the thing up, take a small screwdriver and bend the pins out (so they make better contact with the edge connector on the carts) and 9 times out of 10 you are good to go.  They even make replacement connectors, which just slide in, if you don't want to mess with that. 

[thomas_surles]

I would still try to pick up a nes. I was lucky enough to snag one off Craig's list in my town for 10 bucks. most people here want to ask 50-100 for it which is pretty steep.

what issues are you having with yours?

[Howard_Casto]

I'm amazed he's having any issues tbh.  The NES is a frikkin tank!  With a little bit of maintenance (cleaning and re-adjusting the cart connector pins) they seem to last indefinitely.  I know the one I currently use is 30 years old and I've cleaned and adjusted it a total of one time (10 years ago). 

[mike boss]

Been quite some time since I pulled the NES off the shelf.
Off memory this issue with the NES was the blinking, having to blow on the games, etc.
I'm sure like most NES it is the pins (edge connector?).
I've never checked online for a tutorial, or even looked on how to fix it.
My buddy had his replaced locally for $20.

I just thought I would get the RetroN1 for simplicity.
Run out locally, snag it for $30 and away I go.

I'm all about nostalgia, but by no means a purist.

Perhaps though I will look for a NES locally online, see if I can find one for about $30 in working order.

[Howard_Casto]

Blinking is dirty/mal-aligned pins causing the lockout chip to malfunction... there's nothing wrong with your NES. 

Well you can fix your NES cheaper than you can get the retron 1.  New pin connectors go for 10 dollars and like I said, they just slip on, you don't solder them or anything. 

Open the thing up, look for dirt and take a jewler's screwdriver to bend the pins back out.  It should take 20 min tops and that'll probably fix it right there.  If not buy the new connector and that will fix it. 

Also keep in mind that you need to clean your games periodically.  An eraser on the edge connector usually gets the job done.



This is not a purist/non-purist thing.  This is a superior Nintendo tech versus the cheap junk you find in a plug-n-play game (and yes I mean that literally... 90% of pnp tv games run a NOAC) thing.  Retron systems aren't exactly known for lasting long either.

[pbj]

Meh, get a top loader and forget about all the connector nonsense.  Friend of mine got an NES from a 'reputable' refurbisher that redid the 72 pin and disabled the lock out chip.  Still blinked all the damn time.

[mike boss]

I think I'll look into refurbishing the NES.
I have it, so would be nice to see it working.
I'll get on that this weekend.
I'm sure YouTube would have a tutorial on what I need to do with the pins.

Thanks

[Howard_Casto]

Meh, get a top loader and forget about all the connector nonsense.  Friend of mine got an NES from a 'reputable' refurbisher that redid the 72 pin and disabled the lock out chip.  Still blinked all the damn time.

Usually this is just people that don't know how to insert the cart.  It's a 3 step process. 

1.  Insert the cart normally.
2.  If it blinks hold reset and push the cart slightly to the side.
3.  Repeat as needed. 



Seriously though there's a slight amount of horizontal play in the cart slot on the NES.  You can't just put it in and expect it to work.... sometimes you have to shift it to get the pins to align.  When I was a kid and didn't know this it would wear me out, but now that I do I've yet to find a cart, even an old crusty one, that I can't get working within 3 tries. 

Top loaders are a great option if money is no object, but they are getting ridiculously expensive these days. 

[pbj]

Top loaders are a great option if money is no object, but they are getting ridiculously expensive these days.

They were $100 new, were never worth less than $100 unless you fluked out at a garage sale, and there's a bunch of them on Ebay for $100 shipped today.

[Howard_Casto]

Sure, sure, but a top-loader as-is is useless.  You have to mod it for composite output which takes time and/or money. 

I suppose you could get the av-famicom and a 72 pin adaptor.  They have dropped in price recently. 

[DaveMMR]

Top-loader NES units are a little over-rated. Yes, you get a better connector but at the cost of A/V out plus the premium price sellers tack onto it.  With little effort you can usually get a regular unit to work flawlessly.


Disabling the NES-10 chip is super easy - that will solve any 'blinking' issues. Its literally snipping one leg.
As Howard said, pull out the 72 pin connector, and carefully bend back the pins. (Don't buy a new one though. I have a new one in my current NES and while I don't have to push the carts down anymore, it's way too tight.)
Cleaning carts is easy.  If you don't want to open the games, a little cleaning solution/alcohol on a Q-tip will work fine as well. Clean both sides wet, dry with the other end of the swab. Let it air-dry a bit as well.


Also, avoid the 'blowing' into games. All you're doing is introducing spit in the contacts that can prematurely corrode them.


Agreeing with Howard - the NES was a tank and short of any sort of board/power supply damage they usually last a long time.


The 'Famiclones' are mostly a waste of time/money owing to slopping/incomplete emulation unless it offers something special (like HDMI out) but even then - just throw a cheap computer into service and emulate instead.